Michael Phelps throws his golf club angrily, awkwardly

Mar. 7, 2013
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US swimmer Michael Phelps grimaces after he competed in the final of the men's 100-metre butterfly swimming event in the FINA World Championships at the indoor stadium of the Oriental Sports Center in Shanghai on July 30, 2011. He won gold. / Francois Xavier Marit, AFP/Getty Images

by Chris Chase, USA TODAY Sports

by Chris Chase, USA TODAY Sports

If you've ever played golf, you've been there before. You top a drive in front of a camera crew and a renowned swing coach while on a tee box at the most famous golf course in the world and it's especially frustrating because you're the greatest Olympian in history and can't seem to master hitting a small, white ball from a stationary position.

Okay, maybe only the first part.

Michael Phelps is featured on this season of The Haney Project and his travels took him to St. Andrews for a round last September. The 18-time gold medalist complained about the cold weather and his long days of walking the course (it was his sixth round in six days). All the frustration boiled over when Phelps topped a drive on No. 14.

Haney, watching on film, perfectly described the club toss.

"That wasn't even, like, a good attempt to be mad," he said.

Tossing a golf club to get out frustration is like chucking your goggles after a bad race -- it's not cathartic. The driver's shape is too awkward and its weight is too light to get a satisfying throw.

Slam the head into the ground. Snap the shaft over your knee, Bo Jackson style. Kick your golf bag to the ground while complaining that someone talked during your backswing. Go on an epic cursing rant about how you wish the Scots had stayed in the pubs and never invented this damn game. Anything but throwing your driver, Michael.